Customs officer investigated for alleged terrorizing

by Nick Delgado

Guam - Last night we told you about an investigation underway at the Department of Corrections - this time a tip to the newsroom confirms an active investigation underway at Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency. A complaint was filed Tuesday with Guam Customs and Quarantine's Internal Affairs Section.

Agency spokesperson Lt. Ferdinand Soriano said, "We do have an incident regarding an officer at this time and there is an investigation."

While Soriano could not release specifics, KUAM News confirms the complaint accuses the customs officer of threatening, terrorizing and pointing a duty firearm at a minor as well as alleging the officer threatened individuals on past occasions. "As far as the preliminary reports that we've received regarding this particular complaint, as far as a weapon that was involved, at this point in the investigation there was no weapon in it whatsoever," he said.

It is also alleged that the officer got into a verbal altercation with the person who filed the complaint. Soriano says the agency is taking the complaint seriously and working to expedite the investigation. He said, "The officer is still employed with us, and has been transferred out from the regular general population and placed into basically a desk job…if adverse action does occur only three outcomes will be a possibility1620 either that person would be demoted, suspension and the third most severe would be termination from the agency."

Details about when and where the alleged incident happened could not be discussed, according to Soriano. However, the agency does not tolerate any officer's abusing their authority. "When someone does take advantage of the badge and position that's something our department, and any department that has a uniformed officer that carries a badge, it is basically frowned upon and we take complaints like that very seriously and we hope to correct and rectify that situation," he said.

We should note the Customs officer has been with the department for about 8 years.